Our main destination in Azpeitia was the Sanctuary of Loyola. But the town itself is very interesting.
According to ancient documents, its name comes from the Basque word, aitz, which means "rock," and beitia, which means "from below." Curiously, the rock or mountain that it refers to is Mount Izarraitz and it is located between Azpeitia and the town of Azkoitia, whose name means "below the rock." So, I am guessing that koitia must mean "from above."
Azpeitia does offer amazing views of the imposing Izarraitz massif, with striking rock formations on its ridges. Its old town is home to medieval houses, churches, and monuments dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries. It also boasts of two other interesting museums that are worth a visit - the Basque Railway Museum, and the Ingurugiro Etxea Museum and La Santa Casa.
But because we had no time to visit another museum, my travel amigas and I just enjoyed the understated and peaceful vibe of this pretty little town, mostly ambling along the streets by the Urola River, while on a quest for food - Basque food, if possible, we said.
It was Sunday and it seemed there was not much activity around the area. Either the throng that left the church early that morning had family lunches at their own homes or had already finished their meals at the nearby restaurants and left.
On our walk back to the sanctuary, we spotted this restaurant-bar just across the street. The pretty two-storey establishment had terra cotta bricks on its exterior and a terrace on the second floor. It had wood-framed wide windows on both floors and old-fashioned lamps on the wall. The brick flower beds and flower pots lined in front of the façade made the restaurant cheerful and inviting. The restaurant's name also sounded Basque.
We went in to confirm if they were open. The friendly owners told us in broken English that the restaurant was reserved for a party later on that afternoon, but they could serve us late lunch at the coffee shop. Since this was the only eatery along that section of the street, we were soon followed by the rest of our tour group, and soon enough, we had filled up the entire east wing.
Inside, the restaurant was spacious and elegant with a reception area, formal dining area, bar, café area, terraces, a lovely fireplace, and private function rooms. The formal dining area was decorated with flowers and balloons, and we assumed it was going to be a wedding reception.
At the café area, we were directed to our tables...not as fancy, but since we were hungry, we were mostly interested in the food.
The menu was all in Basque and rather than waste time discussing every item with the servers, who appeared to be members of the family that runs this restaurant, we asked if they offered set menus for groups. We encouraged our tour mates to order from this menu as well for efficiency's sake. We didn’t want to make life difficult for the owners as we were aware that they were in the middle of a banquet preparation, while at the same time trying to cater to a large group of tourists that do not speak their language. The menu, after all, offered a few nice options.
My amigas and I settled for a simple, straight-forward meal of homemade croquettes, bean soup, and a choice of roast chicken or beef with salad and potatoes. The meal came with a cake dessert, house wine, and coffee.
While waiting for our orders, I perused the Basque menu that I borrowed. There was a page with an English translation of the restaurant’s history. Apparently, it was a former cider house that was turned into a restaurant and has been managed by three generations of this family. The menu listed a gastronomic array of traditional Basque cuisine made with seasonal produce. There were meats, game meats, fish and shellfish, vegetables dishes, soups, and sandwiches. They also offered a wide range of pintxos, their version of tapas or nibbles in the Basque region.
We realized how big the restaurant actually was compared to how it looked from the outside. But we could definitely see how this family has taken care of this place, preserving the traditional elements and blending them with modernity. I loved how the wooden beams and railings matched the solid-wood tables and chairs, and how the rustic fireplace in the corner, as well as the wooden-beamed bar, finished the look. The fancy chandeliers hanging from the ceiling gave the place a luxurious but homey atmosphere.
Our food was promptly served and as soon as we finished our meal, the first trickle of party guests arrived. The restaurant owners got busy entertaining them, but they remained attentive to us. If only we had more time, and if the restaurant had not been booked for the wedding reception, we would have tried the more complex dishes....or perhaps, stayed longer for a round of pintxos with some local beer. Oh well! But we were grateful that the owners accommodated us, at least. We said our good-byes and thanked them for a wonderful meal and their hospitality.
Back on the bus, we began our drive to the southwest of France. Passing by more rolling hills, I noticed the road signs were in three languages – Basque (Euskara), Spanish, and French. They reminded me of Canada, where signs and labels are in our two official languages - English and French. In the Basque Country, Euskara is spoken by approximately a quarter of the population, while all Basque inhabitants from the Spanish area speak Spanish and all Basque inhabitants from the French area speak French. It must be awesome to be fully trilingual (I consider myself only fully bilingual - in Tagalog and English, with basic to medium proficiency in Spanish and French...but I promise to get there! Hahaha!).
It was too bad we only had a limited time in this region. If I get the chance to visit the Basque Country again, I hope to explore its other interesting cities – San Sebastian, known for its beach resorts and impressive culinary scene with an abundance of Michelin-star restaurants up its sleeves; cosmopolitan Bilbao, known for its architecturally-fascinating Guggenheim Museum, the beautiful narrow streets of Casco Viejo (Old Town) and its famous chorizos; and Guernica, made famous by Pablo Picasso’s painting of the same name, and known for its Monday markets. It would certainly be an experience to witness the “Running of the Bulls” in Pamplona and visit the Royal Palace of Olite in Navarre.
Over on the French side, I’d love to see Espelette for its picture-perfect streets lined with traditional Basque houses displaying drying peppers (known as piment d’Espelette...I love peppers!) dangling from lines attached to the façade, as well as St. Jean Pied-de-Port, popular for being one of the traditional starting points of the Camino de Santiago. It is located on the Roncevaux Pass at the base of the Pyrenees Mountains (the name pied-de-port actually means “foot pass”).
But for the moment, we were leaving Spain to spend a few days in the Occitanie region of France.
Photo Credits:
stockphoto.com, kiruri.eu, urolaturismoa.eus
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